Friday, November 07, 2008

Old-fashioned Almond and Cherry cake


I hadn't baked for so long and the first cake I started with was this old-fashioned sponge-style cake.
The recipe is for a 7" tin. I used a square one.

For the base you need:

4 medium-sized eggs
1 cup of sugar
1 cup ground blanched almonds
4-5 tbsp white flour


for the syrup

1 cup of sugar and 3/4 cups water


for the filling

250 gr glace cherries
600 ml double cream - beaten
grated dark chocolate
apricot jelly

for the topping

250 gr chocolate
100 ml double cream

for decoration:
flaked almonds
glace cherries

Method:

Separate the egg whites and yolks in two cups. Beat the yolks with the sugar using mixer until doubles volume and the mixtures whitens and becomes creamy.

Beat the egg whites until firm snow forms.

Carefully incorporate 2 tbsp of the egg whites to the yolks mixture, adding gradually 1 tbsp ground almonds and 1 tbsp flour, and so on.
Be careful that the mixture does not have to lose its volume because it won't go up later in baking.
Transfer the ready mixture to previously lined with baking paper form and bake at 180degrees Celsius for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inside the cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool on a rack. After that separate the base to three identical parts.

Bring the products for the syrup to the boil and boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and pour part of it over the first base segment. Cover the base with a thick spread of the double cream, cover with grated chocolate, distribute part of the glace cherries. Take the second segment of the base, cover it with a thick spread of the double cream and pose it over the first one, the part with the double cream facing down to the cherries. Pour some of the syrup over the upper part of the base segment, them proceed with the first one, adding a layer of double cream, chocolate and cherries. Proceed the same way with the last segment. Cover the second one. Pour over the remaining syrup, spread double cream and apricot jelly on top.
Use the remaining jelly to cover the sides of the cake well.

For the ganache topping - heat the double cream and add to it the molten chocolate. mix well, remove from heat and wait several minutes to cool down, but not too much. The pour it over the top of the cake until it cover it well.

Add the flaked almonds to the sides and leave it to cool completely.

Finally decorate with the remaining cherries.

4 comments:

Rico said...

What an amazing cake I think I will make it...it looks so delicious, I just mad about almonds.

Sneige said...

Thanks Rico!

Coffee and Vanilla said...

Alita,
This cake sounds reallllly good.
I think I just found new favourite blog :)))

Margot

Sneige said...

Thank you, Margot! :)

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